This invention is directed to the field of fishing lures, more particularly to a battery powered vibrating fishing lure providing conductor pins frictionally fixed to a circuit board.
The present invention relates to a unique fishing lure of the type to simulate live fish bait to attract fish to be caught. The purpose of any fishing lure is to attract a fish by mimicking a creature which is a part of the normal diet of the fish, such as a worm, amphibian, or smaller fish. Among the expedients taught by the prior art are arrangements for producing sounds and vibrations. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,552,730, to Miller, provides a leaf spring which vibrates when the fishing line is given a sudden jerk. Since the spring vibrates in the water, however, the vibrations are of only short duration and thus effective only if a fish is in the immediate vicinity of the lure at the instant the spring is put in motion. U.S. Pat. No. 2,909,863, to Rector et al., discloses a lure which produces a knocking or tapping sound, by means of a weight striking the walls of the hollow interior of the lure. The action of this lure depends upon movement of the lure through the water, and, consequently, results in an erratic tapping rather than uniform vibrations. A piezoelectric transducer powered by a transistorized oscillator circuit is utilized in the lure shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,757,475, to Pankove.
Further, plug-type lures having internal eccentric, vibrating or buzzing means for producing noise and lure vibration are known in the art. Typical of these lures is the Eccentric Motion Fishing Lure described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,841,012, to Maled, which includes a lure characterized by a hollow body which is caused to vibrate by a rotor, motor and battery combination located inside the body cavity. The battery is wired to the motor and drives an eccentrically mounted weight on the motor output shaft, which weight rotates and strikes the inside cavity of the body to produce vibration, motion, and sound. Another similar lure of the plug design is the Sonic Fishing Lure described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,310,902, to Godby, which lure includes a vibrating coil and breaker point system which are energized by a battery and activated by a switch means operated by tension applied to the connecting line. Buzzing or vibrating of the internal coil and breaker point system is accomplished by pulling or jerking the line to slidably displace the switch with respect to the lure body, and thus complete the electrical circuit.
More recent developments for vibrating lures are described in the further U.S. Patents, namely:
a.) U.S. Pat. No. 4,223,467, to Hodges, Jr. et al., teaches a vibrating fishing lure which includes a hollow body carrying at least one set of hooks and a coil and breaker point vibrator combination mounted in the hollow interior of the body. The vibrator is activated by an attitude sensitive switch and is powered by a battery. The battery is removably positioned in a cylindrically shaped carrier and sleeve located inside the hollow body with access to the battery provided by a water tight threaded cap.
b.) U.S. Pat. No. 4,380,132, to Atkinson, discloses a fishing lure having a water-tight cavity with a wire spring within the cavity, one end of the spring being rigidly affixed to the lure body and the opposite end carrying a weight. The relationship between the cavity size and the weighted spring is such that the spring will oscillate freely within the cavity without the weight striking the cavity walls during normal movement of the lure through the water. Alternate forms of the invention utilize an electronic oscillator driven transducer to produce vibration of the lure body.
c.) U.S. Pat. No. 4,805,339, to Fuentes et al., relates to a sonic fishing lure having an energy source, an electrical circuit, and a sonic transducer, where are each respectively contained within chambers of a generally hollow cylindrically-shaped fishing lure. Due to the construction of the fishing lure, the sound output from the fishing lure is of a greater intensity and is produced for a longer period of time than that of prior art devices. The sound output from a coil activator vibrating plate type of transducer is enhanced by the addition of a second vibrating plate. A fluid connection between the outer surface of the sound transducer and the body of the fishing lure further enhances and intensifies the sound output by the fishing lure.
d.) U.S. Pat. No. 6,035,574, to Ware, teaches a fishing lure for producing vibrations of a pre-determined frequency to attract fish. The fishing lure is provided with a streamlined body to substantially eliminate sound generating turbulence as the fishing lure is pulled through the water. The body is also provided with a shaft passing through the body to cause water passing through the shaft to generate vibrations of a pre-determined frequency known to attract fish. A hook is securely fastened to the body to reduce excess noise otherwise associated with the hook contacting the body.
e.) U.S. Pat. No. 6,047,492, to Watson et al., discloses a fishing lure having a battery-powered oscillator circuit positioned within a water-resistant container module that is removably inserted into a selected body module. The module is balanced to insure proper lure action even as fish-attracting sounds and motions are generated from the container module.
From the foregoing discussion it is clear that there have been many attempts at providing the ideal fishing lure for the many fishermen looking for the best means for attracting a fish. However, electrically powered fishing lures such as those discussed above suffer from difficulty of manufacture and/or corrosion of any exposed conductors that are soldered to circuit boards.
Embodiments of the present invention address the problems mentioned above by providing an electrically powered vibrating fishing lure that provides frictionally fixed conductor pins. Rather than relying on soldering, frictionally fixed conductor pins allow components of the lure to be quickly and easily attached to the circuit board to improve manufacturing efficiency, and remain removable as well thereby facilitating repair. Furthermore, frictionally fixed conductor pins may be a non-corrosive material that is not solderable to the circuit board so that any conductor pins exposed to water do not corrode over time.
An embodiment of a vibrating fishing lure includes a lure body comprising a cavity and a hook attached to the lure body. A battery is disposed within the cavity, and an electric motor is also disposed within the cavity and configured to impart vibrations to the lure body. A first non-corrosive metal conductor is exposed from the lure body. A printed circuit board is disposed within the cavity and includes circuitry for powering the electric motor from the battery. The printed circuit board includes a first pin receptacle electrically connected to the circuitry, and the first conductor is partially disposed and frictionally fixed within the first pin receptacle.
An embodiment of a method of vibrating a fishing lure involves providing a first exposed non-corrosive conductor in electrical contact with an elongate cylindrical battery disposed within a cavity of the fishing lure. A second exposed non-corrosive conductor is partially disposed and frictionally fixed in a pin receptacle in electrical contact with circuitry that controls distribution of power from the elongate cylindrical battery to an eccentrically weighted electric motor disposed within the cavity of the fishing lure. The fishing lure is placed in water to pass electrical current through the water and between the first exposed non-corrosive conductor and the second exposed non-corrosive conductor to power the circuitry and cause power to be distributed by the circuitry to the electric motor.
An embodiment of a vibrating fishing lure includes a lure body comprising a cavity and a hook attached to the lure body. A battery disposed within the cavity, and an electric motor is also disposed within the cavity and is configured to impart vibrations to the lure body. The electric motor includes first and second conductor pins for receiving electric power. A printed circuit board is disposed within the cavity and includes circuitry for powering the electric motor from the battery. The printed circuit board includes first and second pin receptacles electrically connected to the circuitry, and the first and second conductor pins of the electric motor are at least partially disposed and frictionally fixed within the first and second pin receptacles.